Metso's Annual General Meeting, March 31, 2009: President and CEO Jorma Eloranta's review

Metso Corporation's company release, March 31, 2009 at 3:00 p.m.

At Metso Corporation's Annual General Meeting starting at 3:00 p.m.
today, President and CEO Jorma Eloranta reports that Metso's
operating environment and business at the beginning of the year have
been as anticipated: "Our January-February net sales and profit
development support this year's financial performance estimate we
gave in conjunction with the publication of our financial
statements."

In its financial statements release of February 4, 2009, Metso
estimated that its 2009 total net sales will exceed EUR 5 billion,
and profitability is expected to be satisfactory in 2009. Free cash
flow is expected to improve considerably on 2008."Metso's order intake in October-December 2008 dropped to a clearly
lower level than before. There haven't been significant changes in
the markets during the first few months of this year. It is positive
to note that during the beginning of the year there were only minor
cancellations or postponements of projects in the order backlog.""The market for new equipment is slow. January-February net sales in
the services business have remained nearly at the previous year's
level. The market situation is most difficult in the pulp and paper
industry, in construction and in metal recycling. In the power plant
sector, there are active sales negotiations under way for new
projects, but the decision making process is slower than before,"
Eloranta notes. "It is still too early to say when and how the
stimulus packages of different countries will affect e.g. the demand
for our construction products and energy solutions."

In response to the changes in the market situation, Metso has
initiated measures to adjust capacity in several countries. "We have
reduced the use of temporary labor and subcontractors in all of our
units. We have also conducted reorganizations of our operations.
Unfortunately, we have not been able to avoid permanent and temporary
employee reductions. With these actions and strict cost control, we
have aimed to swiftly bring our costs in line with the drop in
demand," Eloranta says.

In his review, Eloranta underscores that today Metso is more flexible
and operationally diverse than in the previous economic downturn: "We
are following market developments very closely, and we are prepared
to take quick actions if the situation so requires. Our goal is for
Metso to come out of this recession stronger than our competitors."

Eloranta says that one of Metso's main goals this year is to improve
cash flow: "We have initiated specific measures to release working
capital. Early-year developments have been encouraging, and I believe
that in our first-quarter financial review at the end of April we
will be able to report positive performance in this area."


Metso is a global supplier of sustainable technology and services for
mining, construction, power generation, automation, recycling and the
pulp and paper industries. We have over 29,000 employees in more than
50 countries. www.metso.com


For further information, please contact:
Jorma Eloranta, President and CEO, Metso Group, tel. +358 20 484 3000

For further information for investors, please contact:
Johanna Sintonen, Vice President, Investor Relations, Metso Group,
tel. +358 20 484 3253

It should be noted that certain statements herein which are not
historical facts, including, without limitation, those regarding
expectations for general economic development and the market
situation, expectations for customer industry profitability and
investment willingness, expectations for company growth, development
and profitability and the realization of synergy benefits and cost
savings, and statements preceded by "expects", "estimates","forecasts" or similar expressions, are forward-looking statements.
These statements are based on current decisions and plans and
currently known factors. They involve risks and uncertainties which
may cause the actual results to materially differ from the results
currently expected by the company.
Such factors include, but are not limited to:
(1) general economic conditions, including fluctuations in exchange
rates and interest levels which influence the operating environment
and profitability of customers and thereby the orders received by the
company and their margins
(2) the competitive situation, especially significant technological
solutions developed by competitors
(3) the company's own operating conditions, such as the success of
production, product development and project management and their
continuous development and improvement
(4) the success of pending and future acquisitions and restructuring.